1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an object such as a toy or ball which, when rotated or spinned through the air, utilizes centrifugal force and gyroscopic and aerodynamic principles to fly though the air. The object is held and thrown into the air in much the same manner a FRISBEE disk.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
The flight of the FRISBEE disk has been known for many years. It consists of a unitary, generally circular plastic body in the shape of a plate or pie tin or of similar configuration which forms a wing and when spun in the air, stays aloft due to aerodynamic lift and gyroscopic stability. Forward flight splits rushing air at the leading edge of the airborne disk. Half of the air goes over the top of the disk and the other half of the air goes underneath the disk. Because the edge of the disk is tipped up, the disk deflects the lower airstream downward. As the disk pushes down on the air, the air pushes upward on the disk resulting in a force known as the aerodynamic lift. The upper airstream is also deflected downward like all viscus fluids, since flowing air tends to follow curved surfaces even when those surfaces bend away from the airstream. The inward bend of the upper airstream is accompanied by a substantial drop in air pressure just above the disk thereby sucking the disk upward.
The prior art further includes the following U.S. patents: U.S. Pat. No. 3,758,985 issued on Sep. 18, 1973 to Heisler entitled “Discus Toy”; U.S. Pat. No. 4,262,911 issued on Apr. 21, 1981 to Opresik et al entitled “Martian Flyer or Earth U.F.O.”; U.S. Pat. No. 4,335,536 issued Jun. 22, 1982 to Magid et al entitled “Inflatable Throwing Toy”; U.S. Pat. No. 5,045,011 issued Sep. 3, 1991 to Lovik entitled “Flying Balloon Toy”; U.S. Pat. No. 5,123,869 issued Jun. 23, 1992 to Schipmann entitled “Aerodynamic Toy”; U.S. Pat. No. 5,360,363 issued Nov. 1, 1994 to Levin entitled “Flying Disk with Rotatable Member”; U.S. Pat. No. 5,882,239 issued Mar. 16, 1999 issued to Trichak entitled “Illuminatable Aerodynamic Disc or Saucer”; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,984,753 issued Nov. 16, 1999 to Perez entitled “Aerodynamic Toy”.